Leyte (CVA 32) - Naval Cruise Book

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LEGENDS have had a profound inliuence on the Greek people There was a time when legends inspired nearly all the reat art S produced by Greece.. A famous example of this fact is the Erect- heum on the Acropolis at Athens. It was erected to commemorate an event of great significance in the legendary histor of Athens, Y the famous contest between Athena and Poseidon to determine which of the two should be the patron deity of the city. Like the Propylaea, the Erectheum was never completed. It was begun about 421 B. C. by an unknown architect. The build- ing, however, reveals the highest attainment of the Ionic way of thinking in architecture. There are many notable characteristics in the construction of the Erectheum which make it different from the usual Greek architecture of that day. The door of the north porch, for ex- ample, is historically significant as the first example of a portal in Athens framed in stone instead of wood. Another striking differ- erence is in the unique design ofythe south porch. The figures of six maidens are used in supporting the architrave of this porch, while the other two employ the traditional pillars. The six caryatides of the Porch of the Maidens have borne their burden well throughout their twenty-three hundred years of existence. Having looked upon many of the greatest scholars the world has ever known, having seen two thousand years of history unfold itself before their eyes, they would, could they but speak, provide man with knowledge of a priceless nature. They are silent in ageless beauty. Aged Erectheum shows evidence of war's devastation One of Three Porches, the south porch differs from the others in having the figures of six maidens to support the architrave.

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Passing through the Propylaea, one beholds the Parthenon on the south edge of the rocky plateau, the summit of the Acropolis. The Propylaea, monumental entrance gate to the Acropolis. CLARITY OF EFFECT, logical construction, and refinement of detail are qualities which characterize the Greek way of thinking in all its expressive forms. The best examples of ancient Greek architecture are to be found on the his- toric Acropolis at Athens. The main approach to the Acropolis is through the Propylaea on the west side of the hill. Begun in 437 B. C. by Mnesicles, the work was never completed and has suffered much dam- age throughout the years. The most impressive structure on the entire Acropolis is the massive Parthenon. The most complete example of the Doric style in temple architecture ever built, it was begun by Kalli- krates and Iktinos in 447 B. C. and completed fifteen years later. Many volumes could be filled in .describing the merits and beauty of these two structures. Ravaged by the foe in war, beaten by the forces of nature for twenty-three centuries, they retain a classic beauty not duplicated by modern man.

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